Colin Carlson

From eebedia

I am a seventh semester University Scholar in EEB, with an additional major in Environmental Studies. I'm currently studying plasticity in the genus Pelargonium, for which I was awarded a 2011 Goldwater Scholarship. I was also named a 2010 Udall Scholar and a 2011 Truman Scholar for my environmental work on and off campus.

Snapping Turtle Research (2008-2010)

This project analyzed the behavior of three Snapping Turtles (Chelydra serpentina) along the Connecticut river. The footage, collected over the summer, was from the turtles Jawless and Lafayette from Wethersfield Cove, and Snippy from Shenipsit Lake. (see the snapping turtle research team page for the full story on the turtles). Also, for more information on Crittercam itself, visit National Geographic's Crittercam Homepage. This analysis encompassed the breath, dive, pausing, walking, and other aspects of locomotion of the three turtles. If you would like to read more about the actual data analysis, check out Snapping Turtle Research: Analyses and Conclusions.

My research on this project was divided into two main stages. First came an analysis of the duration and frequency of breathing and diving behaviors, which revealed a strong positive relationship between breath and dive duration. Second, I described behavioral patterns in the turtles through an analysis of locomotion that was divided into five sub-categories, and I found strong differences between average limb frequency cycles.

Pelargonium Plasticity

"All is leaf, and through this simplicity the greatest multiplicity is possible." - Johann Wolfgang von Goethe

After working for a year on the Snapping Turtle Research project and helping it get to that glorious moment of publication, I’ve finally turned to my thesis research, on light-induced leaf shape dimorphism in South African Pelargonium L’Her (Geraniaceae). To some degree, the focus of this research can be condensed into the following three questions:

1. Is leaf shape actually plastic? (The "what?")

2. Does selection appear to act on plasticity iself, and at what spatial/phylogenetic levels? (The "why?")

3. Have leaf traits evolved independently in their plasticity, and is there any suggestion of evolutionary/environmental constraints on these traits and/or their plasticity? (The "how?")

With the help of a CCB Summer Undergraduate Research Award, I traveled to South Africa during the summer of 2010 with the NSF IRES 2010 group to measure leaf shape variation in a natural context. At present I am conducting experiments in the greenhouse that recreate field conditions, using water stress and different levels of light to examine the fitness costs and phylogenetic patterns associated with leaf shape variation. In particular, it is well established in the literature that leaf dissection is strongly positively correlated with higher evaporative water loss; if dissection is positively, plastically associated with light level, then field plasticity may be reduced because of the thermal effects of high light on EWL, but may be more pronounced in the lab in an "unstressed" treatment.

Along with answering these research questions, an "ultimate" goal of my research is to explore possible flexible stem mechanisms of leaf shape evolution. In many ways, Pelargonium is an ideal model organism for testing theories of phenotypic plasticity and adaptive radiation, given its surprisingly high diversity and impressive degree of plasticity. For this reason, research on this genus could have far-reaching consequences as a case study of diversification, specialization and adaptive plasticity.

The final stage of this project will be to use my findings on the limits and costs of plasticity to determine the vulnerability of these species to climate change, which is a large project that will require information on biogeography and climate change patterns in addition to my data on plasticity. By modifying traditional methods used in population viability analysis to quantify the effect of climate on population stability, this project will take a crucial first step towards applying theoretical models of plasticity and extinction risk to actual high-diversity, high-plasticity, high-risk taxa.

Conservation Philosophy and Career Aspirations

"I know the human being and fish can coexist peacefully." - George W. Bush

One of the major problems that faces conservation and environmental advocacy is that advocates don't always understand science, and environmental biologists aren't always skilled advocates (no offense, guys!). This gap between activism and science is one that I have found to be a major obstacle in my environmental work as director of the Cool Coventry Club and as a steering comittee member of the Connecticut Youth Activist Network, and it is one that has shaped my career goals profoundly. More about me: I'm part of the EcoHouse living community on campus (and will continue to be next year), a member of environmental organizations such as EcoHusky, and will be organizing a symposium on environmental justice issues next fall with the help of the UConn Human Rights Institute. After I graduate from UConn, I plan to go to graduate school to receive my Ph.D., but I won't stop there - law school seems to be a reasonable next step. After all, science and policy should go hand in hand - so even though I might end up in either field, both degrees will be of use to me.

Publications

Bob was the pet snake / of Doctor Schwenk / around my nape / the snake did drape. / As you can see / a corn snake was he. Photo credit Robert Roehm.